Gaming machines, such as slot machines, video poker machines and the like, have been a cornerstone of the gaming industry for several years. Generally, the popularity of such machines with players is dependent on the likelihood (or perceived likelihood) of winning money at the machine and the intrinsic entertainment value of the machine relative to other available gaming options. Where the available gaming options include a number of competing machines and the expectation of winning each machine is roughly the same (or believed to be the same), players are most likely to be attracted to the most entertaining and exciting of the machines. Shrewd operators consequently strive to employ the most entertaining and exciting machines available because such machines attract frequent play and hence increase profitability to the operator. Accordingly, in the competitive gaming machine industry, there is a continuing need for gaming machine manufacturers to produce new types of games, or enhancements to existing games that will attract frequent play by increasing the entertainment value and excitement associated with the game.
To meet the increasing expectations of players, gaming machines are becoming more sophisticated. New techniques and technologies must continue to be introduced to survive or excel in an extremely competitive market.
Traditional video slot machines have evolved into a more robust entertainment offering, providing players with bonus rounds to enhance the basic slot game. As players patronize these new games, more and more rely on bonus rounds as their main method of entertainment and, in many cases, a primary method of return during play. With increasing regularity, many players determine a slot game's value based on the entertainment of the bonus round(s) as well as the perceived frequency of bonus play. This trend will likely continue to grow as improved technologies allow gaming machine manufacturers the ability to produce more exciting and entertaining offerings, especially in bonus games.
As stated above, the perceived frequency at which a bonus game is triggered is becoming a critical factor in determining the value and popularity of many video slot machines. Many excellent games have caused the loss of a player's initial enthusiasm to participate because a bonus round failed to trigger, or triggered infrequently during basic reel play. For example, a game that is programmed to randomly trigger a bonus an average of once within 100 wagers can experience a span of nearly 200 wagers before another bonus round is initiated (one bonus near the beginning of the first 100 wagers and one bonus near the end of the second 100 wagers). Because this is a random event, a longer period between bonus rounds is possible. If this, or a frequency near this occurs often but still within the boundaries of the game's configuration, the player's perception may turn negative towards the game, thus reducing the number of potential return players and, subsequently, the number of plays.
A method of automatically increasing the probability of triggering a bonus game as the number of basic slot games increases since the last bonus game, and displaying the increased likelihood to the player in an entertaining manner, would help alleviate negative perceptions of slot games that players believe rely on bonus rounds as a main form of entertainment and return.